Shakespeare in the Park returns with Othello

PUBLISHED April 9th, 2013 01:18 am | UPDATED January 21st, 2016 07:22 am

It’s time to bring out your picnic baskets and mats – it’s time for Shakespeare in the Park! The Singapore Repertory Theatre (SRT) will be presenting Othello as its 2013 Shakespeare in the Park production at Fort Canning.

SRT’s Shakespeare in the Park has become an annual fixture in Singapore’s arts calendar and it’s no wonder – there is something very appealing about enjoying a glass of wine and a picnic under the stars while listening to Shakespeare’s beautiful dialogue.

Othello is one of Shakespeare’s best-known tragedies. The story of how Othello, a Christian Moor and general of the armies of Venice, is manipulated by his ensign-turned-arch villain, Iago, who preys on his insecurities and twists his love for his wife, Desdemona, into a powerful and destructive jealousy.

O, beware, my lord, of jealousy;
It is the green-eye’d monster, which doth mock
The meat it feeds on.

The Director of Othello is Bruce Guthrie, who directed last year’s edition of Shakespeare in the Park – the production of Twelfth Night –  and was the Associate Director for Richard III (the Bridge Project) in 2012.  The Scottish Director, from Stirling, Scotland, said, ‘Racial prejudice exists all over the world in a variety of forms and this is transferable to Othello.  The characters are so complex and the language is so rich.  I think it is one of his greatest tragedies because the final outcome is so avoidable.’

So what are the challenges for the director and cast of a production like Othello compared with a comedy like Twelfth Night?  ‘The plot and the language are more densely packed in Othello.  Twelfth Night is a much lighter affair with plenty of opportunity for comic relief to keep an audience entertained. Othello requires suspense and gripping sequences that will engage the audience from start to finish.  We need to sustain a level of tension in this one, which can be exhausting for the cast but will ultimately pay off with us having a great production’, said Guthrie.

Bruce also mentioned that the heat and weather are always the challenges when directing for Shakespeare in the Park!  ‘We also have some moving parts in the set along with more ambitious set pieces than last year’s show.  I want the production to be epic in scale and to give our audiences something new.  We must always strive to build on the previous year’s production and I think we are on course to do that.’

‘The key to Othello (as with any great play) lies within the relationships of the characters.  Iago is one of the most complex villains every written,’ said Bruce Guthrie.  The main roles will be played by Daniel Francis (Othello), Wendy Kweh (Desdemona) and Daniel Jenkins (Iago).  Both Daniel Jenkins and Wendy Kweh have been in previous Shakespeare in the Park productions, while Daniel Francis, a UK-based actor, is a newcomer to Singapore.   ‘It is going to be exciting to discover the dynamic between all the characters.  I believe this work must be done with the actors in rehearsals’, says Guthrie.  ‘The only research I have asked them to do is explore the play and to think up back stories to their relationships from before the play has begun.  They will then flesh these out in rehearsals.’

When asked if he felt that Othello is still relevant in 2013, he replied, ‘Of course it is relevant or why would we do it?  It deals with universal themes.  Our production will focus on the conditions created when soldiers are trained and sent to fight a war that doesn’t exist.  Movies like Apocalypse Now, Jarhead, The Hurt Locker and Buffalo Soldiers have all played a part in my preparation for the production.’

Of course, there are also Shakespeare’s words.  His ability to summarize the range of human emotions in simple yet profoundly eloquent verse is perhaps the greatest reason for his enduring popularity. If you cannot find words to express how you feel about love or music or growing older, Shakespeare can speak for you. No author in the Western world has penned more beloved passages. Othello is full of memorable quotations.

So, what is the appeal of watching Shakespeare performed in the open air?  Perhaps it is the knowledge that people have done this around the world for hundreds of years and now, and Singapore has its own version of that tradition.  According to Bruce Guthrie, ‘There is something beautiful to me about an audience coming together to see a great play performed on this kind of huge scale while having a picnic and sitting under the stars.  It is sort of ideal to have the elements there on hand while these world famous characters make their many poetical references to them.  I think Shakespeare would be thrilled that his plays are being performed in parts of the world he never knew existed.’

We also caught up with homegrown up-and-coming actor Erwin Shah Ismail, who plays Montano, a commander in Othello. He finds Othello to be one of, “the most painfully exciting and most terrible in terms of tragedy.  There are timeless themes such as love, hate, racism, jealousy, revenge, trust, violence, spouse abuse, judgment and reason. It is also a sad story with several learning lessons to avoid tragedy, really.”

As an actor in Othello, the greatest challenge? The heat rears it’s ugly heat again, “Honestly, I think the heat and humidity down at Fort Canning Park in our outfits are going to be the greatest challenge and I’m certain the rest of the actors will vouch for that too.”

And why should the public watch Othello? “It is SRT’s 20th Anniversary and I believe this show has got the right amount of boldness and spectacle worthy of every single dollar spent. When was the last time you had a lovely picnic? That’s another good reason!”

The audience at this year’s Shakespeare In the Park can look forward to a bigger, bolder and better production than last year’s.  It is a chance to watch a modern take on a timeless Shakespearean tragedy of jealousy at its most destructive. It’s Shakespeare on a blockbuster scale – think back to the previous productions of Macbeth and Twelfth Night – and come prepared for a thrilling outdoor experience.

Othello will be on at Fort Canning Park from 24 April to 19 May 2013.  For more information, please check out

www.sistic.com.sg and www.srt.com.sg.

 

City Nomads members will enjoy a 15% discount for the show on Saturday, 4 May 2013.  Come and join the City Nomads ‘Picnic In Black’ on 4 May 2013!

 

City Nomads members are in for a treat on Saturday, 4 May 2013.  Not only will they receive a 15% discount off the price of Othello tickets (Cat 1) but they can also join the Picnic In Black.

What is the ‘Picnic In Black’?  It’s a tongue-in-cheek dig at last year’s Diner en Blanc or White Picnic organized by an upmarket French picnic organizer, which caused some controversy. Participants of Diner en Blanc had to dress in white bring their own picnic tables, “good” food and drinks, to a venue revealed on the day itself. Singapore was the first Asian country to host this event.

For the Picnic In Black (black for Othello, geddit?), you can choose to dress up or down in black, bring mats, cushions, props – whatever you like.

As for the food, it does not have to be black but you can get creative in the kitchen if you wish (anyone for squid ink pasta, caviar and black truffles or cake?).  But most of all, come to enjoy the play and soak up the ambience at Fort Canning.

See here for more information.